One of the gunman lifted Mora off the ground, he said, so he told the men that the money was hidden in a cigar box. As the suspects began looking for cash behind the counter, Mora said he heard police sirens and knew it was time to flee.

“The guy with the gun told the others the cops were here,” he said. “Then I got out. Then Rey came behind me.”

Mora said of his young colleague, “He fell down. … Then he got shot.”

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said at a news conference that Cuevas collided with an officer, who was responding to a 911 call of an armed robbery at the location. Kelly said the seven-year veteran of the force accidentally discharged his weapon, shooting Cuevas in the shoulder. Surveillance footage shows Cuevas colliding with the officer, whose weapon was drawn.

“He was a good kid,” Mora said of Cuevas, who he said worked nine to 10 hours a day, six days a week.